Alexandra Torrens-Vilas, charged with DUI after an officer rear-ended her, also suing the city and former Police Department employees

Joel Francisco, 37, was charged with four counts of official misconduct,… (Broward Sheriff's Office,…)

June 4, 2010|By Tonya Alanez, Sun Sentinel

A woman arrested for DUI after a Hollywood police officer rear-ended her and allegedly doctored a police report to place the blame on her is suing the officer, the city of Hollywood and four other Police Department employees present at the 2009 crash site.

Alexandra Torrens-Vilas' lawsuit, filed Thursday in federal court in Fort Lauderdale, says the parties falsified reports and conspired to fabricate evidence, leading to her false arrest and the violation of her constitutional rights. She is seeking compensatory damages, attorneys fees and further relief to be determined by a jury.

All five Hollywood Police Department employees named in her suit were fired in January: Officer Joel Francisco, Officer Dewey Pressley, Sgt. Andrew Diaz, Community Service Officer Karim Thomas and crime-scene technician Andrea Tomassi.

The incident involves a February 2009 crash in which Officer Francisco rear-ended Torrens-Vilas, 24, while on duty in his patrol car.

A dashboard camera in the car captured Francisco and others apparently discussing how they would doctor the crash report to absolve Francisco of blame.

Seemingly unaware that the camera was recording their conversation, the investigators can be heard saying: "I don't want to make things up ever, because it's wrong, but if I need to bend it a little bit to protect a cop, I'm gonna. … We'll do a little Walt Disney to protect the cop."

Earlier this week, Francisco, 37, and Pressley, 43, were each charged by state prosecutors with four counts of official misconduct, four counts of falsifying records, one count of conspiracy to commit official misconduct and one count of conspiracy to falsify records.

The two former police officers surrendered Wednesday and were released from jail the next day, each on $100,000 bail.